ARS | Publication request: Novel diversity identified in a wild apple population from Kyrgyz Republic

Submitted to: HortScience
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: December 8, 2008
Publication Date: April 1, 2009
Citation: Volk, G.M., Richards, C.M., Henk, A.D., Reilley, A., Miller, D.D., Forsline, P.L. 2009. Novel diversity identified in a wild apple population from Kyrgyz Republic. HortScience 44:516-519.

Interpretive Summary: Wild apples believed to be progenitor species of domesticated apples can be found in the mountain ranges of Central Asia. Previously, we characterized the wild apples of Kazakhstan and identified sets of individuals that can be used to represent the genetic diversity of the entire population. This research compares the diversity of a wild population in the forests of the Kyrgyz Republic to diversity we described previously in Kazakhstan. We found novel alleles in the Kyrgyz Republic population and recommend that some of the individuals in this population be included in the USDA National Plant Germplasm System apple collection, located in Geneva, New York.

Technical Abstract: The genetic diversity of a wild Malus population collected in the Kyrgyz Republic was compared the genetic diversity of Malus sieversii seedlings collected in Kazakhstan. Based on microsatellite marker results, we conclude that the population of 49 individuals collected in the Kyrgyz Republic includes private alleles and this population is assigned to a common genetic lineage with M. sieversii individuals found in the Karatau Mountain range of Kazakhstan. We recommend that a subset of these individuals be included in the National Plant Germplasm System Malus collection so they may be made available to breeders and physiologists for further examination.